Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid doesn't need much motivation. Being the competitive guy that he is, he absolutely abhors losing. But on Monday night, in Game 2 of their first round battle with the Toronto Raptors in the NBA Playoffs, Embiid needed a stern reminder.

When it became clear that the Raptors' defensive ploy against Embiid was to rough him up, Sixers coach Doc Rivers knew he had to light a fire under his prized center. After the win, in a report by ESPN, Rivers revealed what he told Embiid when the Raptors were hitting him hard.

“No, Jo, you be the dominant guy.”

So, dominate Embiid did. He posted a double-double of 31 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Sixers to a 112-97 win and a 2-0 lead in the series.

Embiid had a stronger showing compared to his 19-point output in Game 1. Rivers added that allowing the MVP candidate to play physical gave them an edge, but reminded his wards that they should still maintain their focus.

“They (Raptors) wanted to muck the game up and play physical. I just told our guys to just play through it.”

Embiid had verbal scuffles with Raptors forward OG Anunoby and coach Nick Nurse during the game, but as the Sixers star has said before, getting into with opponents makes his competitive juices flow.

The Sixers will look for a third straight win when they visit the Raptors on Wednesday.